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Top officials strongly recommended $95.4 million Portland Building overhaul to stop future 'waste' of money: Portland City Hall Roundup

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The Portland Building, the city's administrative headquarters, needs a $95.4 million project to fix structural and water problems, officials say. The City Council, however, isn't unified about whether such an overhaul makes sense.
(The Oregonian)

In briefing binders given to elected officials and their staffs, top administrators warned that continuing patch-work repairs on The Portland Building would amount to wasting taxpayers’ money.

The building, opened in 1982 and known for its distinctive post-modern design, is in line for a seismic upgrades and a complete overhaul of its exterior because of water infiltration. The $95.4 million price includes far more than just construction costs, however, with $19.5 million projected to rent office space for two years during renovations.

Officials also offered an option to build a new facility, at a cost of $110 million to $400 million, but the memo “strongly recommends” improving The Portland Building instead. City officials released the documents to The Oregonian this week, in response to a public records request.

“There have been extensive, ongoing water intrusion issues in the Portland Building since construction. Despite numerous studies and major repair projects over the last three decades, there has been no long-term resolution,” a synopsis states.

“The City has reached a critical juncture with regards to ensuring the continuity of core operations; providing for the health and safety of 1,500 occupants, and addressing the ongoing building issues.

“The practice of attempting to ‘patch’ maintain the building with $500,00(0)-$1,500,000 projects every couple years has not been successful. This practice can no longer effectively maintain the building envelope and structure.

“Money spent on these ‘patch’ projects is wasted because this type of repair cannot provide along-term solution. In addition, the continued water infiltration gradually degrades the underlying concrete structure of the building.”